Seasonal Affective Disorder

Joy here...After Sunday's failed run, I gave myself a gillion excuses to eat crap and not to work out for most of the rest of the week.  I managed to pull off a run on Thursday and another one today (Saturday), but two measly runs at the start of my new "training" as I force myself to gear up for the 30km race I've signed up for (and paid the registration for) and the half marathon that I'll run with Nomi doesn't bode well for the next few months.


And to tell you the truth, while I could come up with excuses or I could come up with reasons (as there are many:  I've been busy; we bought a new house and I'm trying to pack; I have some looming publishing deadlines; I have yet to finish our Christmas shopping etc. etc.) I've decided to blame it on the weather.  Yep, that's right.  It's the weather's fault.


And I'm not even joking.

The Canadian Mental Health Association describes Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) in the following way:

SAD can be difficult to diagnose, since many of the symptoms are similar to those of other types of depression or bipolar disorder. Even physical conditions, such as thyroid problems, can look like depression. Generally, symptoms that recur for at least 2 consecutive winters, without any other explanation for the changes in mood and behaviour, indicate the presence of SAD. They may include:

• change in appetite, in particular a craving for sweet or starchy foods
• weight gain
• decreased energy
• fatigue
• tendency to oversleep
• difficulty concentrating
• irritability
• avoidance of social situations
• feelings of anxiety and despair

The symptoms of SAD generally disappear when spring arrives. For some people, this happens suddenly with a short time of heightened activity. For others, the effects of SAD gradually dissipate.

Let's see, a "craving for sweet or starchy foods" - check; "decreased energy" - check; "fatigue" - check, and probably "weight gain," but I don't have a scale, so I can remain blissfully ignorant of the specifics of that one.

So while I can't say that I have some serious SAD (as I'm still as social as ever and not really feeling any additional anxiety/despair), I do have my fair share of regular sad.  I feel like sleeping and eating, and running would just get in the way of that.  All of this means that my next few months of trying my best to get back into some kind of running shape is going to be damn hard.  

I'm going to do my darndest to use this blog and to keep in touch with all my friends so that I can keep myself motivated throughout these dark, cold winter months.  And I will turn that frown upside down...and kick some butt running too!

In the meantime, here are my "sad" running stats for this week:

Thursday - Ran for a total of 49:32:41 for a distance of 8.81km with an average pace of 5:37min/km.

Saturday - Ran for a total of 1:07:11 for a distance of 11.76km with an average pace of 5:43min/km.

Over and out,

Joy